The Function of Delegated Legislation

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Students learn to:

· define law

The law is a set of rules imposed on everyone. Laws are recognised and enforced by the police and court. If the law is breached there can be consequences. The law is universal so it applies to everyone.

· distinguish between customs, rules, laws, values and ethics

Customs are established patterns of behavior that vary depending on the culture, religion and history of a group of people. For a society or a country, Customary law has influenced has influenced in the following areas : indigenous customary law, english speaking law and international customary law.

Rules apply to certain people at a certain time. Rues are often written or used via symbols and penalties can also be used to ensure people comply with rules. Rules can also be changed quickly depending on the situation.

Values are a reflection of the things that society considers important, values are also often reflected in the law. Values and ethics are not constant.

Ethics are things that society considers wrong and right. EG- respect for another person's property and refraining from violence against another individual.

· describe the characteristics of just laws and the nature of justice

Just laws are equal. This means that everyone is treated the same. However, this does not mean that the outcome has to be equal when applying the law. A just law is utilitarian, meaning that an action achieves the greatest “good” for the greatest number of people. Just aws aim to reduce inequalities and should not create injustice. Just laws must not be retrospective, meaning that laws must be made for the future. Laws that change the legal status in the past are unjust. The law must be known; they need to be known to be enforced. Justice is a combination of equality, fairness and access. Justice is symbolised by lady justice. Blindfold=impartiality, scales = fairness and sword = to carry out justice.

Equality means that laws do not discriminate, they are applied equally and the enforcement of law has to also be equal. Fairness means that just laws don't have a particularly harsh effect on any individual, the right to appeal a decision and also that fairness and equality aren’t always met. Lastly access means that individuals must be able to access the law in order for justice to be achieved and the right to have access to legal information to understand the law.

· define and investigate procedural fairness and the rule of law

Procedural fairness is the idea that there must be fairness in the processes used to resolve disputes. The main principle is the concept of fair treatment before the law, it includes:

The right for a person to participate in legal proceedings in which they have an interest

The right to have a matter heard before a court that is free from bias and use only evidence presented to them to make a decision

The right for a defendant to have a hearing, during which they have a chance to present evidence

The right to test evidence presented in the case (cross examination)

The right of the accused to not have had previous convictions brought up during their trial

· define anarchy and tyranny

Rules are needed to ensure that our behavior is regulated to meet the common expectations of society. The absence of laws, the inability to enforce laws or the unfair and unequal application of laws can result in states of anarchy or tyranny.

· outline the origin of common law

The origin of common law originated in the early middle ages in the King’s Court, a single royal court set up for most of the country at Westminster, near London. The common law of England was largely created in the period after the Norman Conquest of 1066.

· examine the hierarchy and jurisdiction of state and federal courts

Within the states and federal courts system, there are a number of different courts. Each court has a particular ‘jurisdiction’, which is the scope of a court's authority to decide matters. Hierarchy is the high court. These courts have jurisdiction over a state, a union or a group of states and union territories. Below the high courts are a hierarchy of subordinate courts such as the civil courts, family courts, criminal courts and various other district courts.

· outline the role and structure of parliament and the legislative process

The parliament consists of the Queen, represented by the Governor-General, and two houses-the House of Representatives and the Senate. The Parliament passes legislation. The Governor-General has a role in the legislative process by assenting to Acts.

· describe the function of delegated legislation

The function of delegated legislation is it allows the government to amend a law without having to wait for a new Act of Parliament to be passed. Delegated legislation provides a very important role in the making of law as there is more delegated legislation enacted each year than there are Acts of Parliament.

Students learn to:

· define law

The law is a set of rules imposed on everyone. Laws are recognised and enforced by the police and court. If the law is breached there can be consequences. The law is universal so it applies to everyone.

· distinguish between customs, rules, laws, values and ethics

Customs are established patterns of behavior that vary depending on the culture, religion and history of a group of people. For a society or a country, Customary law has influenced has influenced

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